Citation needed

The tag "[citation needed]" is added by Wikipedia editors to unsourced statements in articles requesting citations to be added. The phrase is reflective of the policies of verifiability and no original research on Wikipedia and has become a general Internet meme.

Usage on Wikipedia
The tag was first used on Wikipedia in 2006, and its template created by user Ta bu shi da yu. By Wikipedia policy, editors should add citations for content, to ensure accuracy and neutrality, and to avoid original research. The citation needed tag is used to mark statements that lack such citations. , there were more than 539,000 pages on Wikipedia (or roughly 1% of all pages) containing at least one instance of the tag. Users who click the tag will be directed to pages about Wikipedia's verifiability policy and its application using the tag.

Usage outside Wikipedia


In 2008, Matt Mechtley created stickers with "[citation needed]", encouraging people to stick them on advertisements.

In 2010, American television hosts Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert led the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., where some participants held placards with "[citation needed]".

Randall Munroe has frequently used "[citation needed]" tags for humorous commentary in his writings, including in his 2014 book What If?